Cher and Cyndi Lauper, two iconic singers, dazzled a packed Nationwide Arena audience last night
in a concert that was impressive both musically and as a spectacle.

Cher, 67, made an amazing entrance. The curtain fell, and there she was, standing atop a 20-foot
pole, looking like a cross between an Egyptian queen and a Vegas showgirl as she belted out
Woman’s World and
Strong Enough.

“This is my farewell-farewell tour, I’m not kidding,” she said with winks and crossed fingers. “
I’m too old for this.”

For this tour, Cher said, “I’ll come out, sing in fabulous costumes and be fabulous.”

And that’s just what she did, wearing 11 different costumes, including a mind-blowing,
ground-touching Indian headdress of pink, blue and orange feathers for
Half Breed. She also emerged from a Trojan horse as a blond warrior for
Take it Like a Man; appeared in a silver-fringed, heart-shaped pasties thing with
platinum/pink hair for
Believe; and wore a cute tux-like creation on
Welcome to Burlesque.

However, a concert is more than just fashion. Cher’s distinctive contralto voice was strong as
ever on most songs, particularly on
You Haven’t Seen the Last of Me; I Found Someone; If I Could Turn Back Time; Just Like Jesse
James and a cover of Marc Cohn’s
Walking in Memphis.

A highlight came when Cher sang, seemingly with late ex-husband Sonny Bono, on
I Got You Babe as videos of him were shown. “I thought about doing this for a long time,
but I never could,” Cher said. “But since this is the last tour … He was such a ham. He would love
this.”

Cher concluded her concert in a gown, halo and blond pigtails as she hovered over the crowd to
sing
I Hope You Find It.

Cyndi Lauper gave a great 60-minute performance to open the night. Lauper wore a hooded robe and
strode through the crowd like a boxer coming to the ring as she sang
She Bop. She took that off to reveal a black leather get-up, combat boots and long flaming
red hair while singing
I’ll Kiss You.

As she sang the reggae-flavored
Witness, Lauper, 60, was whirling around like it was 1984 again. This was repeated on
dance songs like
Into the Nightlife and
Sex Is in the Heel, the latter song from her Broadway show
Kinky Boots. She also screamed
Money Changes.

Everything as if her fortunes had suddenly changed.

There was some art on
All Through the Night, with Lauper illuminating her face with a light stick, holding a
mirror ball in front of her face and holding long, beautiful notes. There was also some humor on
Girls Just Wanna Have Fun.

Then there were the brilliant ballads
Time After Time, Hat Full of Stars and
True Colors. On the latter, Lauper screamed at the end, “Don’t be afraid! And that goes
for everyone.”